George Woodruff was drafted into the Army Infantry in November 1942 at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and sent to Camp Maxey, Texas, for basic training. He was subsequently assigned to the 102nd Infantry Division and sent to Camp Swift, Texas, and Camp Dix, New Jersey, for advanced training. He described being present during the June 10, 1943, race riot in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In September 1944, Woodruff and fellow 102nd Infantry troops were shipped directly to Cherbourg, France and then taken by train to Germany and into combat. He described life in the field during prolonged combat, being shocked by the concentration camps, and of being in Germany as the war wound down in 1945. He describes standing guard duty for 4,000 German prisoners-of-war before Germany surrendered. Woodruff returned to New York in late December 1946 and was discharged from the Army at the beginning of January 1946. He was awarded two bronze stars for his service. He was interviewed by Suzette McCord-Rogers on Jul 11, 2007. He was born in Winner, South Dakota, on September 2, 1920. He moved to White Cloud, Kansas, when he was 16 years old and graduated from White Cloud High School. He became a farmer after the war. The 2005 Kansas Legislature passed a bill funding the WWII Veterans Oral History grant program. This transcript is from one of the nine community institutions that received these grants. The transcript from the interview is presented here; the original video copy of the interview is available through the Doniphan County Historical Society (Troy) and through the Kansas State Historical Society.

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George Woodruff was drafted into the Army Infantry in November 1942 at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and sent to Camp Maxey, Texas, for basic training. He was subsequently assigned to the 102nd Infantry Division and sent to Camp Swift, Texas, and Camp Dix, New Jersey, for advanced training. He described being present during the June 10, 1943, race riot in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In September 1944, Woodruff and fellow 102nd Infantry troops were shipped directly to Cherbourg, France and then taken by train to Germany and into combat. He described life in the field during prolonged combat, being shocked by the concentration camps, and of being in Germany as the war wound down in 1945. He describes standing guard duty for 4,000 German prisoners-of-war before Germany surrendered. Woodruff returned to New York in late December 1946 and was discharged from the Army at the beginning of January 1946. He was awarded two bronze stars for his service. He was interviewed by Suzette McCord-Rogers on Jul 11, 2007. He was born in Winner, South Dakota, on September 2, 1920. He moved to White Cloud, Kansas, when he was 16 years old and graduated from White Cloud High School. He became a farmer after the war. The 2005 Kansas Legislature passed a bill funding the WWII Veterans Oral History grant program. This transcript is from one of the nine community institutions that received these grants. The transcript from the interview is presented here; the original video copy of the interview is available through the Doniphan County Historical Society (Troy) and through the Kansas State Historical Society.